Dinner Disasters
by LizKilljoy
Summary: Donna and the Doctor are invited to Sylvia's Birthday Dinner. Despite the Doctor having a headache, he decides to go anyway. But when the headache develops into a migraine and Sylvia decides to deal with the problem, things get out of hand... (Doctor Whump!)
1. Chapter 1

The TARDIS landed in Chiswick on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. They got the invitation to Sylvia's "Birthday Dinner party" a week ago, and Donna still had to find her excitement about it. She knew it would end in a catastrophe, like everything involving her mother these days. She even had to argue with her to bring the doctor along, because her mother didn't approve of her "traveling" with this strange man instead of "finding a job and finally make a living". But Donna didn't care. Either the both of them or no one.

So here they stood, on the front step of Donna's house, ringing the bell. While they were waiting for the door to be answered, Donna looked over at her friend. The Doctor had picked his brown, pinstriped suit and had tamed his chaotic hair to a neat, yet spiky style. He looked really good, if not for his brows furrowing once in a while.

"Are you alright?" Donna looked at her friend.

"Yeah, sure. I think the Ibuprofen is wearing off a bit, that's all. No need to worry." He had a headache this morning and took some painkillers, not wanting to cancel the party and giving Sylvia the satisfaction. Speaking of the devil, the door swung open.

"Ah, there you are. Finally. Come in, you're late."

They were shoved into the living room, where the other guests were already sitting around a decorated table with soup, turkey, and mashed potatoes. "Donna, Doctor! Good to see you! Come sit down. You have to tell me where you've traveled to the last couple of months."

Wilfred indicated the two free seats on each side of him and the two sat down, smiling at the excitement of the old man.

"Well, Gramps. We're just coming from 1862. One hell of a year, right Doctor?"

"Absolutely. Brilliant. Except the food, that was, well...mäh.". The Doctor looked over the table filled with huge bowls of food and couldn't help but feel nausea rising up. The Ibuprofen he had taken earlier was wearing off faster than he had predicted, and the headache was now developing into a full-fledged migraine.

"Let's hope Sylvia's food is better then." Whispered Wilfred, winked and reached over the table to get a big slice of the Turkey. But not without Sylvia noticing.

"Dad, what are you doing?! You know the fat is not good for your cholesterol." She snatched the turkey plate from under his nose, but Wilf started protesting. "That's not fair. Everyone gets a piece, except me? Donna, tell her that's not fair!" He looked help seeking to his granddaughter, who glared daggers at her mother.

"Mum now is not the time to table a new diet. You never had anything against gramps eating turkey before."

"Yes, I did. I am tabling a new diet for weeks now, you just never were here to notice it." That hit a nerve. Sylvia had always been complaining that her daughter was never at home, but not as much as she did when she began traveling with the doctor.

"Oh, I'm sorry mom, that I get my life together and see the world! You had always been the one telling me to leave the house. Now I do, and you're still not satisfied!" Donna was furious. Her mother always found a way to get to this topic, ignoring the fact that this time, the Doctor was sitting on the table with them. Sylvia hadn't explicitly said his name, but everyone with a functioning brain could put two and two together.

But instead of being offended, or coming to Donna's help, as usual, the Doctor was just staring at his plate. His brows were furrowing again and he was swallowing heavily now and then.

"Doctor, is everything alright?" Wilfred was the first one to notice something was wrong. At his words, Donna's attention immediately switched to her friend, who quickly looked up and nodded his head a bit too enthusiastically. "Yeah, yeah I'm alright. The food is fantastic..."

"But you haven't eaten anything yet." Sylvia countered, eyeing him confused.

"Haven't I? Oh, right...I just...Donna, where's the toilet?"

"Ehm, down the hall, last door on the left..." Donna couldn't even finish her sentence properly, as the Doctor suddenly bolted out of the room, knocking down his chair and Wilf's wine glass, which was thankfully empty.

Everyone at the table was taken aback by this sudden sprint, leaving a now even more narked Sylvia staring at her daughter. "What. Was. That."

* * *

The Doctor burst through the bathroom door, fell to his knees in front of the toilet and managed to lift the lid just in time as he vomited into the bowl. He felt like crap. His head was pounding more and more, sending a jolt of pain through him at every heartbeat. And he had two of them, so the pain didn't even seem to stop. Oh, how he hated migraines.

Being a Time Lord, he had a much more complex brain than an ordinary human: his telepathic abilities alone gave him access to at least twice as much neural cells, and when those were on overdrive, it could become nearly unbearable.

As his stomach calmed down, the doctor noticed that someone was standing outside the open door. Brilliant. He had tried not to make a fuss about this, but given his sudden sprint towards the bathroom, he hadn't done such a brilliant job apparently.

"Are you ok?" Donna approached him slowly, a worried look on her face. She knew about those migraine attacks and how bad they could become. She had insisted that he stayed in the TARDIS earlier this morning, but the Doctor had not wanted to give Sylvia the satisfaction of not coming, or to give her a reason to brag about his not coming towards Donna. She had fought so hard for her mother to allow him being here in the first place.

But now he was sitting here, ruining the party. "No...I'm so sorry Donna, I-"

Donna made her way across the small bathroom and knelt beside him, rubbing circles on his back. "Shh, it's ok. It's not your fault."

"It is..." A new wave of pain washed over him and he clenched his eyes shut. He couldn't help but gag again, but this time without anything coming out.

"I should go back to the TARDIS.." He stood up but swayed on his feet. The light coming through the tiny bathroom window was way too bright and burned in his eyes, forcing him to shut them again.

"You're going nowhere, Spaceman. Look at you. You can't even look or walk straight, and you're shaking."

The Doctor hadn't noticed that, until Donna took him by his arm and lead him out of the bathroom, steadying his walk. His view was getting smaller and smaller by the minute, and without Donna's guide, he would have knocked over every object in range, and probably himself, too.

* * *

It was a mystery to him how they had managed the stairs, but Donna led him into a small bedroom on the first floor. "No Donna, I can't..." "Yes, you can. And you will, Spaceman." Without further argument, Donna indicated him to sit on the bed, pulled off his converse and loosened his tie. "Sorry that I can't offer you a pajama, but gramps' are way too small for you, skinny boy."

The Doctor, feeling defeated by Donna's insistence, laid down onto the fluffy pillow.

She, on the other hand, got up and pulled down the curtain. As the room got dark, the Doctor let out a sigh

"Better?"

"Yeah...Donna, are you sure you want me to stay? You know how bad Time Lord migraines can get...I don't want to upset your mother or the rest of your family...I've already made a mess in the bathroom..."

"Yes, I am sure. I'm also sure that you couldn't even leave the house in your state. So, no argument. Try to sleep a bit, maybe it. gets better." Donna stroked his head and turned to head for the door, as the Doctor caught her wrist.

"Thank you..."

She smiled. "You're welcome."


	2. Chapter 2

When Donna came down the stairs her mother was waiting for her at the kitchen door, a look of utter annoyance on her face.

"What was that about, Donna?"

„I'm sorry, but the Doctor was not feeling well." Donna tried to explain, but Sylvia cut right through.

„Obviously. So that's why he nearly threw over the table and ran out of the room without a word?! That was very rude! I know why I don't want you to bring him along..."

Donna had to gather all her mental strength not to yell at her mother, or worse, slap her in the face. Instead, she drew a deep breath.

„Mom, listen, please. Don't be mad, it's not his fault. And he's definitely not rude." She sat down at the table again, as did her mother, still waiting for an explanation.

„No, I can agree to that!", Wilfred said but was silenced by a look of his daughter.

„So, Donna, then why should I not throw him out at the spot? You could see that he did not want to be here. So why did you bring him along in the first place? And where is he now, anyway? He owes me an explanation!", Sylvia raged on.

„I was going to explain, but you wouldn't let me continue, so..." Donna gave her mother a look but continued before she could counter anything.

„I've put him in bed upstairs, and DON'T complain about that, Mum because it's MY room. He's had a headache the whole day but wanted to come anyway. He took some painkillers in the morning, but they were wearing off quite fast and the headache developed into a migraine. You know how bad migraines can get..."

„Then he should have stayed away."

Donna could feel the displeasure and annoyance radiating from her mother, and tried to reason one last time in favor of her friend.

„But he did not want you to be mad if he stayed away because he knew we argued about it before. And believe me, he's very sorry about this."

Sylvia did not know what to say against that, and although Donna could still sense her annoyance, they continued with the Dinner for the time being.

* * *

When the first guests were about to leave, Donna thought it would be a good time to check on the Doctor. She knew he would probably be sleeping, but a quick check whether he needed anything would do no harm. And she was glad she did.

Standing in front of the bedroom door, she could already hear the quiet moans coming from the other side. Donna cautiously opened the door, and as her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she saw the Doctor helplessly tangled in his sheets. He was clutching his pillow in an iron grip, eyes clenched shut and damp hair clinging to his forehead. This was bad.

She quietly closed the door to not let more light in, crossed the room in no time and knelt down in front of the bed.

„Doctor...? Hey, Spaceman...can you hear me?" She spoke quietly, stroking his damp hair. The Doctor's eyes cracked open and a single tear ran down his cheek.

„Donna...?"

„Yeah, Sweetheart, it's me...You're not getting any better, aren't you? Sleep's not helping?" She wiped away the tear.

„No...I-I think it's getting worse... I'm so dizzy, it feels like the whole room is spinning...and it hurts...Oh Rassilon, it hurts...I don't want..." He clenched his eyes shut again.

„Shh...Sweetheart, I know...Do you want me to get anything for you? From the TARDIS?" Donna was considering whether there were any pain meds left in the TARDIS, but she wasn't sure.

„Do you have any pain meds? I-I think I've taken the last Ibuprofen this morning..." Ok, that was answering her question. „Yeah, sure. I think mom has a few left in her stock. I'll be back in a minute." Ok, that was answeringdo no har morning..."TARDIS, but she wasn't hurts...I don'autiously openedneeded anything would do no har

* * *

She left the room and was halfway down the hallway when her mother came up the stairs.

„And? Is he any better?", she asked.

„No, I think he even got worse..."

„Yeah, well, considering that whining coming from your room..." And that was enough for Donna.

„Mom, stop it. You've had migraines yourself, you know how bad they can get. And the Doctor is really having a bad one. I get that you are not totally excited to have him here, but he's my best friend and he's not feeling well. So stop complaining!"

Sylvia raised her hands. „Yeah, well, whatever my daughter wants. But as I can see that he's not any different, could you go downstairs and help your granddad do the washing up?"

„Yes, but..."

„No, Donna, for one time you could do something in this house. Your Doctor will not be going anywhere soon, will he?"

Donna took a deep breath. „Yeah, whatever. But before I go, do we have any Ibuprofen left?"

Sylvia had already started to walk away. „I suppose. I will take care of that. Go help your grandfather, or he will crash the wine glasses again."

Donna reluctantly went down the stairs. She should be the one tending to her sick friend, but she had not wanted to argue with her already annoyed mother. Today was one of those days when Sylvia could explode any second if something would not go according to plan. And the Doctor definitely did not go according to plan.


	3. Chapter 3

Silvia entered the bathroom and opened a small drawer with a red cross on it. She always kept the home pharmacy stocked up, and pain medication was always in it, one way or another. She pulled out several packages and compared them, deciding on the highest dose because of the Doctor's obvious very strong migraine. Maybe those would help, they always did with her horrible headaches. Sylvia put the fizzy tablet in a glass of water and headed back to Donna's bedroom.

* * *

The Doctor noticed the door opening, mainly because the incoming light was burning in his eyes. He couldn't quite make out who entered the room, but a glass of water was put on the nightstand. „Drink up, it will make you feel better."

Before he could respond anything, Sylvia had left the room again. It was odd that Sylvia, of all people, would want him to feel better. But then again, if he felt better, he would leave. Sylvia never made an effort to hide her dislike. She was even worse than Martha's mother had been. Why did he always have such an effect on the mothers of his companions? He would never know.

The Doctor took the glass and emptied its content at one swallow. His hand was shaking and sitting up wasn't all that easy when the room was still spinning. At first, he was a bit confused that he hadn't gotten a pill, just a glass of water. But then he thought that he was probably an effervescent. Those were easier to swallow and acted much faster.

He wanted to put the glass back on the nightstand and lie back down but noticed something was odd. He couldn't quite put a hand to it, but it felt... wrong.

The Doctor could feel his hearts beating faster and more erratic than just seconds before, and it was suddenly hard for him to breathe. He looked with horror at the glass in his hand. „No... Please, no..."

* * *

There was a loud crash when the glass slipped out of his hand and onto the parquet floor.

The Doctor doubled over, shaking and tried to draw in a steady breath but failed.

He slipped from the bed onto the floor, his shaking becoming more and more uncontrolled.

„D-DONNA!", he yelled with all his remaining air and strength before his whole body started to convulse.

He wasn't even sure, whether she had heard him...


	4. Chapter 4

Donna was putting the last wine glasses back into the cupboard when she heard something shattering upstairs. Did the Doctor break something? She had put a bucket beside his bed intentionally so that he would not have to run to the bathroom if his stomach was acting up again. Maybe her mother had dropped a glass?

But Sylvia entered the kitchen only a moment later. Has your grandfather broken a glass again? I told you to watch out for him..." She looked around for shards but was confused to find none.

„We're already finished with the glasses..." Donna stopped mid-sentence, when a loud ‚thumb' came from upstairs, followed by a muffled call that Donna thought was her name.

She instantly dropped the towel and made her way upstairs. „Doctor? Is everything alright?"

When she reached her bedroom, she could hear a strange scraping sound coming from the inside. „Doctor?" Donna slowly opened the door and was horrified by what she saw.

The Doctor was laying on the ground, glass scattered all around him. He was having some kind of seizure, and his hands and forearms were cut by glass shards of several sizes.

„Oh god! What happened?! Doctor!" Donna ran into the room and nearly threw herself onto the floor. She tried to hold the Doctor in her arms and get him away from the glass. „Doctor! Talk to me!"

„Th-The glass...what was in the glass!? I...hng..." He clenched his eyes shut and held onto Donna as his whole body was trembling.

„I don't know, some painkillers I suppose! Mom wanted to get you some...Oh God. Please don't tell me she has...Mom!"

* * *

Sylvia came through the door only seconds later. She must have followed Donna upstairs, and this time, she was glad about it.

„What is- Oh my god, what happened?! Should I call an ambulance?"

„No! Mom, what did you give him?! What was in that glass? What did you put in the glass?!" Donna was starting to panic as the Doctor's breathing was coming in short gasps.

„Just some Asprin effervescent. I thought the strongest would be best for-"

„Oh no! No, no, no, no! Please, Doctor what can I do?! Is there some kind of Detox for this? Like with Agatha? Hey, talk to me!" Donna shook the Doctor's shoulders gently but firmly so that he would focus on her.

„Cho-Chocolate...I need Chocolate..!" She could see the alarm in his eyes and knew she could waste no time. „Mom, get some chocolate! Anything we have, It doesn't matter what! Quickly!"

A very confused Sylvia ran out of the room and downstairs into the kitchen. She didn't understand what was happening, but she could see that it was a very serious situation, so she asked no questions.

A minute later she ran upstairs again with a bar of milk chocolate in her hand. It was half eaten, but everything they had. Wilfred must have secretly nibbled on the sweets again.

As she reached the bedroom, she had already unwrapped the chocolate and practically threw it into Donna's hand. „That's all we have..."

„Quickly!" Donna took the chocolate, broke it into small pieces and nearly forced it into the Doctor's mouth.

„There you go, Spaceman, chew and swallow... that's right...take it easy...you'll be fine..."

She watched as the Doctor tried to swallow the chocolate, but failed and started coughing.

„Shh...easy. Bit by bit, come on..." She took smaller pieces now and put them one after another into the Doctor's mouth.

* * *

Donna tried to stay calm and have the situation under control, but she was growing more and more desperate. The Doctor had told her after the incident with the Detox at Agatha's about his physiology and allergies. It had been so self-evident for her that she hadn't even thought about the possibility of her mother not knowing about it.

And know it could be too late because the chocolate did not seem to be enough to help. She had given the Doctor the last bit, but he still was trembling in her arms and far too close to hyperventilation for her liking.

„Doctor, breathe. In and out, in and out...! Ok, that was the last bit I had. Is it helping?!" The Doctor was clenching his eyes shut and shock his head. He needed a few attempts to be able to speak, and Donna had to lean closer to understand his words between the gasps.

„Too...fast...not...enough..."

„There has to be something we can do! A Detox?! Or a different...something?! Please?" Tears were starting to form in Donna's eyes and she was well aware that her mother was still standing by the door.

„TAR...DIS...Hy-pospray...hng...console..." The Doctor's eyes cracked open and Donna understood. She quickly lowered him onto the floor and gestured to her mother to taker her place. Hopefully, the chocolate would slow down the reaction long enough. She squeezed the Doctor's hand one last time and kissed him on the forehead. „Don't you dare die on me!" And with these words Donna bolted outside in the direction of the TARDIS.


	5. Chapter 5

The TARDIS door flew open and Donna burst into the console room. She was panting but didn't allow herself to catch her breath. Somewhere under the main console had to be a med kit, the Doctor had used it before when she had been stung by some kind of alien bee.

Donna couldn't remember under which floor grating it had been, so she started to open them all. Luckily, the second one revealed a big grey box with a mauve cross on it. She would never understand why the universal colour for danger was mauve and not red, but that was not important right now.

Too afraid to pick the wrong hypospray or lose any more time. She took the whole box and headed again for the TARDIS door.

* * *

Sylvia didn't know what to do. She was kneeling beside the Doctor and prayed for her daughter to hurry with whatever she was doing. The Doctor's gasps had become more irregular and she had started to hold his hand in hers.

„I...I'm so sorry, I didn't know..."

Suddenly the Doctor squeezed her hand hard and looked her straight in the eyes, panic all over his face. Sylvia noticed that the ragged breathing had stopped, but she was alarmed by his look. Something was happening , but she did not know what or how to react, and that made her panic, too. The Doctor was opening and closing his mouth repeatedly, like a fish on dry land...and then Sylvia understood: He was choking. He wasn't able to draw in air anymore.

„Oh God, no! Donna, hurry up!"

At that moment, the bedroom door flew open and Donna burst into the room, a gray box in hand. She came to a slithering halt in front of her friend, fell to her knees and ripped open the box in one move.

„Ok Doctor, I'm here. Don't die, please! You have to tell me which one you need! There were so many, I...!

Donna's hands were hovering over the Doctor and the med kit. She didn't know which one of the four hypospray pistols he would need as they were not labeled.

* * *

The Doctor's vision was blurry and he could barely make out the case. Black spots started to dance in front of his eyes, as he reached out towards the far left pistol containing a blue liquid substance. But he only came as far as brushing his fingers over it, when his eyes rolled back.

„No, no, no!" Donna wrenched the pistol out of the box, pressed it to the Doctor's neck and pulled the trigger with an audible hiss.

The following seconds felt like slow motion: The hypospray fell out of Donna's shaking hand, the Doctor's eyes began to close and Sylvia's hands were pressed over her mouth.

„Come on Spaceman, don't do that to me!"

Seconds felt like hours, in which Donna could feel every heartbeat pounding against her chest like a wrecking ball.

Then suddenly the Doctor's eyes flew open and he gasped for air. Coughing and breathing heavily he tried to sit up, and was immediately met by a bone crushing hug from Donna.

„Don-na...can't...breathe...!" With a look of sheer panic, she released him again

„Oh god, I thought you were ok...!" She looked at him and was greeted by a weak, but genuine smile.

„Donna Noble, you just saved my life." His face was white, and he was still a bit out of breath, but his eyes reflected utter relief.

Donna just sat there in front of him, on the floor, tears starting to form in her eyes. But before anyone could say or do anything, she reached back and slapped the Doctor straight in the face.

„Don't ever do that again! I thought you...you would die...!" She flung her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder.

„I nearly did..."

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment, and Donna pulled back when she felt a shiver going down his spine. She saw his hand gripping his stomach and he made a gagging sound.

„Doctor?"

„The bucket, quickly...!"

Before Donna could have stood up and reached the bedside, Sylvia had already put the bucket into the Doctor's lap. Just in time as he started vomiting.


	6. Chapter 6

Donna rubbed comforting circles on the Doctor's back while his body got rid of the remaining Aspirin in his system. He knew it must be a pathetic sight, and the fact that he had started shaking again did not make it any better. Oh, how he wished this whole process would be as easy as a normal detox: stimulate whatever the substance had prohibited, get it out of the system, finished. But this was a whole different level.

After a few minutes, the Doctor felt like he could move again. Slowly and carefully, Donna helped him getting up and steadied his shaking movements.

„' You alright?"

„Yeah, Well...I won't die, so..." He gave Donna one of his cheeky smiles and received a light slap on his arm in return. „Ow..."

Sylvia had taken the bucket and made her way to the door. „Do you still need it? Otherwise, I'll get rid of it, it smells like Acid."

„No, I..."

„Well then." And with these words, Sylvia was out of the room.

„I'm so sorry about this all...This kind of Detox is much nastier than the one you know. And Time Lord vomit basically is acid, with all the toxins and...oh no." The Doctor's gaze was fixed on one place on the floor.

„What is it, Doctor? Do you have to...?"

„No...God, no. Donna, your mum will kill me. This time for real..."

Donna's eyes followed the Doctor's to a yellowish-brown spot on the otherwise spotless white flokati carpet in front of the bed. „Is that...did you...?"

„I think so..."

* * *

Donna remembered very well the day her mother had bought the (very expensive) white flokati, although she had wanted a normal purple carpet. But Sylvia was of the opinion that she would be using her room as a guest room when she moved out, and the flokati would go wonderfully with the curtains. And a few weeks later she had gotten the Job at H.C. Clemens and one could say she had moved out by now...sort of.

Now, her mother's probably favourite carpet was ruined by Time Lord vomit.

„I will take care of that later. But now we should get you back to the TARDIS Spaceman, you look like a ghost."

The Doctor let Donna lead him out of the room and slowly down the stairs. On their way to the door, they were greeted by a very worried looking Wilfred.

„Doctor, what happened up there?! They didn't tell me. And you don't look so good..."

„Well..." Donna cut through the Doctor's attempt at an explanation.

„Let's say, Aspirin wasn't such a good Idea. I'm sorry gramps, we're on our way to the TARDIS so that he can get some rest. Talk to mum about the details, and please see If she's alright, she hasn't come out of the bathroom yet...I promise I'll come back before we leave."

With that, the two were out of the door, leaving a confused Wilfred behind.

* * *

Donna and the Doctor were greeted by a worried hum from the TARDIS. The old girl could sense that something was wrong after Donna's hectic search for the med kit earlier. The Doctor gave her a mental equivalent of ‚Thank you, I'm ok, just need some rest.', and the two made their way to the Doctor's bedroom.

He put on his Pyjamas and lay down while Donna threw the brown suit in the laundry. There were little spots of vomit on the fabric, but she hoped the TARDIS could handle that.

Other than her mum's carpet. She still had to explain that Sylvia's favourite flokati was very likely ruined.

When Donna came back to the bedroom to check on the Doctor, her friend was already fast asleep. This whole thing had stretched him to the limit. She sat down on the edge of his bed, careful not to wake him, and began to stroke his messy hair.

„Oh Timeboy...you nearly died today, and yet you constantly apologised... I was afraid I would lose you...Don't do that again." Donna bent down and put a kiss on the Doctor's forehead. Although he seemed fine now, she decided to stay with him, just in case. She could deal with her mum and the whole drama tomorrow.


	7. Chapter 7

The Doctor was still asleep, and Donna was preparing some tea as someone knocked on the TARDIS door. On the outside stood Wilfred, a covered tray in one hand and a metal suitcase in the other. "You forgot something yesterday...Is everything alright Sweetheart?"

Donna stepped outside and closed the door behind her in one swift motion. "Yeah, the Doctor is still sleeping, though. He was quite exhausted after this whole thing. Did mum tell you what happened?"

"Yes, she did. All grumpiness of the morning gone. I think she is blaming herself...But the Doctor is alright?"

"He's still a bit shaken, but he will be fine. He's sleeping it out. What is that?" Donna pointed at the tray in Wilfred's hand.

"Oh, yes. A little something from your mother. An apology I suppose. She has heard that the Doctor liked Bananas, so she baked some banana bread after you left."

He handed the tray over to Donna, who peeked under the cover and took in the sweet smell. "Oh, he will love that. I would invite you inside, but I don't think the Doctor would like 'new' people in the TARDIS when he can't show her off himself."

Wilfred laughed at that. "Sounds like him. Then just take that with you and send him my best wishes. But promise me to say goodbye before you leave." He handed Donna the metal first aid suitcase, too, which they had left in the bedroom in the rush of action.

Donna was already halfway through the TARDIS door, when she remembered something important. "Gramps! Wait, one more thing. How did mum take the carpet?"

"Uh, well..." Wilfred's eyes wandered to the floor. "Well, I'm sure she isn't that mad at the Doctor, otherwise she wouldn't have baked the bread, but...after trying every cleaning product and nearly etching a hole into it, she more or less had a nervous breakdown. I wouldn't doubt that she is still upstairs trying to get it out..."

Donna had expected that. After all, Sylvia had loved that carpet. But she doubted that the cleaning products were the ones etching a hole into it.

"I'm afraid she won't get it out...the carpet is ruined...But I will take care of it. The Doctor has been through too many things to deal with my mum on top of it all. See you later, Gramps!" And with these words, Donna closed the TARDIS door behind her.

* * *

The Doctor woke up to a delicious smell of fresh tea and something...banana. Not real bananas, but close enough. He opened his eyes to find a tray on his nightstand, filled with a mug of hot tea and a piece of banana bread. On the mug was a sticky note saying "Good morning sleepyhead. Hope you feel better." in Donna's handwriting. He couldn't help but smile at that. She knew him too well.

Halfway through the banana bread, the bedroom door creaked open and Donna's head peaked inside. She was happy to see the Doctor awake and apparently enjoying her mother's present.

"Ah, there's someone hungry. I see that as a good sign?" She opened the door fully and came up to the Doctor's bed, which was now covered in banana bread crumbles.

"I havm't eatm for neary shwo days."

"Doctor, please swallow before you speak."

"Um...sorry. Yes, I'm feeling much better. Sleep and tea are working wonders, and delicious banana bread on top? I'm as good as new!"

He put the last slice of banana bread into his mouth. "Did you make that?"

Donna had to smile at the scene in front of her: The Doctor in his pyjamas, hair a total mess, but happily munching on his banana bread.

"No, my mum made it. Gramps was here earlier today and brought it over. She is very sorry about what happened yesterday."

"It's okay, she couldn't have known. She may be capable of many things, mostly containing nasty comments and swearing, but not such a thing...Speaking of swearing, do you know if your mother said anything about the carpet?" The Doctor started to rub the hair at the back of his head, a habit he had when he was nervous or thinking.

"Actually..." Donna began and wandered around in the bedroom. "She's been trying to get out the stains the whole day, and she's a breath away from a nervous breakdown. She loved that carpet, and I'm sure she's not suing you for it only because it was partly her fault."

"Oh..." The Doctor stopped in the middle of getting out of bed. "Well...we'll think of something to do. But first you'll have to excuse me, I need to take a shower. I'm still smelling that...smell." He made a face and gave Donna an apologetic look, before heading straight for the bathroom.

"Ok, take your time. I'll meet you in the console room." The bathroom door fell shut and Donna heard the water running before she left the room with a smile on her face.

Half an hour later, the Doctor stepped into the console room with freshly styled hair and his blue suit on. "I have an Idea!"

Apparently, Donna hadn't heard him coming, because she gave away a tiny scream as she was spoken to from behind. "And what would that be?"

"I will replace your mother's flocati. But the new one will be the finest quality earth has ever seen! I know a planet, which is specialised to hand-woven carpets and fabrics. Your mum will like it, it's self-cleaning."

Donna had to laugh at that. Self-cleaning sounded indeed like something her mother would enjoy. "Okay, sounds like a plan. But we will be back? I promised grandpa to say goodbye before we leave."

"Of course. We will be gone for..." He looked at a display. "...five minutes." Then he flicked some switches and sent the TARDIS flying through the Vortex.

* * *

Donna went up to the front door of her house. They had really been away just five minutes, but were strolling that alien carpet market for over two hours to find the perfect replacement for the flocati. Because the Doctor didn't want to give her mother the present in person (maybe he was too afraid of her reaction), they had figured out a plan.

Donna would say goodbye to her family at the front door, and in the meantime the Doctor would place the carpet and a thank you note at the backdoor, so Sylvia would find it when she went outside.

Seconds after Donna rang the doorbell, Wilf stepped outside. "Oh, Donna. I thought you were already gone, I heard the TARDIS noise..."

"I told you I would come back. Besides, we've brought a little surprise for mum, the Doctor is placing it at the backdoor. But only get it when we're gone, I don't want mum and him to argue. You know it would happen."

"Yeah, you're probably right. She has given up on the carpet by know and has thrown it away, accompanied by a few tears. I wouldn't want to get near her know." Wilf looked behind himself, but there was no sign of Sylvia.

At that moment, the Doctor came around the corner, and Wilf's face lit up. "Doctor! Good to see you. Are you feeling better? We were worried..."

The Doctor gave Wilfred his exciting smile. "Wilfred! Yes, yes I'm fine again. I've slept it out. I'm as good as new. Sorry again...Did Donna tell you about the carpet?"

"Yes, she did. I can totally understand why you don't want to confront Sylvia. Either she will scold you, or hug you to death. Probably both."

"Yeah, I'm not sure if I want that...Anyway, I think we're off again, right Donna?" The Doctor was bouncing on his feet again, full of excitement for their next adventure.

"Yeah, see you gramps, and tell mum I love her and she shouldn't be mad because we left."

"I will. And you take care of yourself, both of you." Wilfred pointed at them both before hugging them goodbye.

"We will."

* * *

The TARDIS noise sounded through the street as Sylvia ran outside, but she was too late. The blue box had already vanished. Instead, she found a tightly wrapped roll of some sort of fabric leaning on the house wall. Attached to it was a note that read:

 _"Sylvia,_

 _I'm sorry about all the chaos I've caused yesterday. I know you don't like me very much, and you've all rights to hate me even more for ruining your favourite carpet. But I want to thank you for staying by my side, although I've probably ruined your party in return. As a redemption, I've bought you a replacement for your flocati. See it as a birthday present. It's made out of the best fabric I could find, and it's self-cleaning. I hope you like it and you accept my apology. I'm so sorry again. Hopefully we'll meet again under more pleasant circumstances._

 _Until then, all the best_

 _The Doctor"_

Sylvia looked doubtfully at the wrapped roll. A self-cleaning carpet? Well, at least the Doctor knows how to make a housewife happy. She would thank him next time the two would visit, also then her temper would have cooled off.

If only she knew that next time the circumstances would be much worse...

* * *

Author's note:

Thank you to everyone who stayed with this story until the very end and to all those wonderful reviewers out there! Kudos to you 3

Also, I'm always open for Ideas and writing prompts, just tell me :)


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